Kojirō Shinomiya
}} |kanji = 四宮 小次郎 |romaji = Shinomiya Kojirō |alias = The Légumes Magician Master Shinomiya (四宮師匠 Shinomiya Shishō) (by Sōma Yukihira) |status = Alive |age = 28Shokugeki no Soma episode 12 |blood type = B- |birthday = November 16th |gender = Male |height = 185 cm |weight = 65 kg |family = Kojirō's Mother |cuisine style = French |food forte = Vegetable |generation= 79th |occupation = Tōtsuki Culinary Academy (Former) Elite Ten Council: 1st Seat (Former) Head Chef & Owner |workplace =Shino's Shino's Tokyo |manga = Chapter 15 L'étoile Chapter 1 |anime = Episode 8 |voice actor = Yūichi NakamuraFood Wars: Shokugeki no Sōma Anime's Video Unveils More Cast Members, Songs Yumiko Kobayashi (Young)Shokugeki no Soma episode 12 credits Benjamin McLaughlin (English) }} is a 79th Generation Tōtsuki Academy Alumnus and a previous 1st seat of the Elite Ten Council. He is a world renowned chef, and the first Japanese man to earn the Pluspol award. He is also the main protagonist of the spin-off manga, Shokugeki no Soma: L'étoile. Appearance Kojirō has coral-colored hair that comes to his neck, with bangs parted to the left. He also has a prominent undercut on his right side. His left ear is pierced with a silver hoop earing and he wears glasses over his amber colored eyes. He also wears a silver cross necklace whenever he's not in his chef uniform. During his time in Tōtsuki, Kojirō looked relatively the same except that he did not wear glasses. Kojirō is normally seen wearing a standard Chef's uniform with a red neckerchief. Personality Kojirō is an extremely uptight person due to the people of France ostracizing him because he was Japanese and belittling his dream to earn the Pluspol Award. This caused him to become a much more ruthless individual who does not tolerate anyone going against his orders. He flatly denied any sort of input into his dishes, feeling that, as the head chef, no one had any authority to change his recipes. He has always been a smug individual even since his Tōtsuki days as shown when he rubbed in his higher grade in Italian Cuisine to Fuyumi Mizuhara whose forte was Italian Cuisine. He is also very cocky, constantly harassing Megumi during their Unofficial Shokugeki, deeming her a "dunce". He hates it when people waste time and is quickly annoyed the minute he catches his employees not working. In reality, Kojirō is a caring and friendly individual but his more abrasive nature became more pronounced after he graduated. According to Gin Dōjima, because he achieved his dream of earning the Pluspol, he began to stagnate, afraid to show that he lost his reason to cook. After the unofficial Shokugeki during the Training Camp, Kojirō returned to his former self, welcoming input from his workers but still just as smug as before. History Kojirō was a typical child who often got into fights with other boys. Understanding her son, Kojirō's mother never scolded him and always brought him home to make his favorite meals. Although his family was poor, they saved enough money to eat at a French cuisine restaurant when he started grade school. It was at this restaurant that Kojirō saw his mother smile so brightly for the first time in a long time. Kojirō resolved to learn all he could about French cuisine so he could make his mother that happy. Both Kojirō and his mother are from Kyushu and talk with the heavy accent of that region when speaking with each other. Life in the Tōtsuki Culinary Academy Eventually, Kojirō entered Tōtsuki Culinary Academy as a part of the 79th Generation alongside Fuyumi Mizuhara. During his time there, his record and performance was impeccable as he earned an "A+" for an Italian Cuisine assignment when the 79th Generation Italian Cusine expert, Fuyumi, earned only an "A". Nevertheless, Kojirō had a somewhat friendly relationship with her and 80th Generation Alumni Hinako Inui and Donato Gotōda. During his time there he eventually held the 1st Seat of the Elite Ten Council with Fuyumi in the 2nd Seat. He was among the few members of his class to graduate along with Fuyumi. At their graduation ceremony, he announced that he will be moving to France with the goal of earning the Pluspol award, a highly coveted French Cuisine award. Hinako and Fuyumi expressed their concern due to his abrasive tendencies, much to his annoyance. During the grand opening of Hitoshi Sekimori's restaurant, Kojirō was challenged by Hinako who could not accept his dream, to an unofficial Shokugeki. In a decisive and one-sided result, Kojirō won the match. On the day of his departure, Hinako, Fuyumi, and Donato wished Kojirō well as he left Japan to achieve his dream. Achieving Dreams Upon arrival in France, Kojirō immediately set off to work to make a name for himself. Setbacks soon followed him though in his first days around Paris, losing one of his luggage bags at the airport and being rejected from several restaurants. He later reflected on how much easier it was in Japan where every restaurant had previously wanted him to work for them. He could not even be counseled by his friends there as he had told them not to contact him or that he would not get in touch with them until he had succeeded. When Kojirō finally did manage to land a position after impressing the head chef, he was soon fired after being sabotaged by the sous chef who retaliated after being caught by Kojirō trying to pass off sub-standard meat in the restaurant. Frustrated but unwilling to give up, Kojirō sought refuge at a library, looking up different recipes so he could continue his training. As the library was preparing to close, Kojirō ran into someone unexpected. After Kojirō obtained his own restaurant, he performed well for the first few initial months, but it became apparent that he was facing adversity from the people there who belittled his ambitions. After his chefs began to disobey his judgments, Kojirō reached a period of depression due to the rapid decrease in work quality and positive feedback. It was at this time that he changed his entire work ethic and treatment of his employees. He fired his insubordinate chefs and became a ruthless head chef, intimidating his workers to obey his judgments. Because of this, Kojirō finally emerged out of his slump and the people of France began to revere him as a French Cuisine genius. After many years of hard work, Kojirō was awarded the Pluspol award that he had long sought after. Plot Tōtsuki Friendship and Rapport Training Camp Main article: Training Camp Arc Kojirō was recruited as an instructor for the 92nd Tōtsuki Generation's Tōtsuki Friendship and Rapport Training Camp at the Tōtsuki Resort. He, along with his fellow Alumni, were first introduced by Roland Chapelle in the main hall of the hotel. Upon entering the room, Kojirō immediately picked up a scent and expelled a student on the spot. When questioned behind his reasoning, he stated the scent of his hairdressing product could hinder the aroma of the dishes. When the student protested, Kojirō immediately silenced him. Gin Dōjima used this as an example for the tone of the camp, as the alumni had the authority to "fire" any students who did not meet the alumni's expectations. With the rules set, the training camp began. At the end of the first assignment, Kojirō scolded Hinako Inui over the phone for being late to bring her group back to the hotel. Second Day Main article: Yukihira-Tadokoro Vs. Shinomiya Shokugeki By the second day, Kojirō had already expelled over thirty students. Among the students in his second day class was Sōma Yukihira and Megumi Tadokoro. For his assignment, Kojirō tasked them with cooking a Nine Vegetable Terrine, but cryptically told the students to treat each other as enemies since they were to work alone. Unknown to the students, Kojirō placed already oxidizing cauliflower into the vegetable pantry, setting up the students unable to reach the ingredients fast enough to fail. Megumi was one of the students stuck with the bad cauliflower, and added vinegar to her blanching water in an attempt to fix the issue. When she presented her dish, Kojirō detected the vinegar she added, and fired her for altering his recipe. Sōma, who had already passed the test, protested the decision, arguing that Megumi only modified the recipe because Kojirō failed his responsibility as a head chef to provide the proper ingredients. Kojirō did not take Sōma's defiance well, and revealed he purposely set up some students to fail with bad cauliflower. Insisting that no one was allowed to change his recipe for any reason, Kojirō threatened to fire Sōma if he showed any more insubordination. Much to his surprise, Kojirō was challenged by Sōma to a Shokugeki to rescind Megumi's expulsion. Though Kojirō refused as per the rules of a Shokugeki, Gin overheard the challenge and ordered an unofficial Shokugeki, forcing Kojirō to comply. After completing their afternoon task, Megumi and Sōma arrived at the basement kitchen in the Resort, where Kojirō and the other Alumni were waiting. Using the remaining vegetables from that day, Gin declared that their dishes will use them as a basis and added one last condition to the Shokugeki, in which Megumi had to be the head chef and Sōma the sous-chef. With the conditions set, Kojirō began to cook and threw some insults at Sōma, saying that his future is solely in the hands of Megumi, whom he called a dunce. Kojirō presented his dish first, a Chou Farci. As the judges ate his dish, the reception is overwhelmingly positive. Noting the difficulty using savoy cabbage, the dish illustrated how Kojirō got his title as the Légumes Magician. However, Gin was left unsatisfied as the dish Kojirō gave was not from his specialties. Kojirō smugly replied that he was simply holding back because his challengers were nothing more than students. When it was Megumi's turn to present, her Rainbow Terrine received praise from the judges. After eating both dishes, the judges were given a coin to represent a vote. One by one, they placed their coin on the plate of the chef who they felt cooked the better dish. In a decisive and one-sided result, Kojirō won the match. Kojirō mocked both Sōma and Megumi as he prepared to depart. However, much to everyone's surprise, Gin placed a coin on Megumi's dish. When Kojirō asked Gin about his impromptu vote, he tossed a coin to him, asking if he has been stagnant all the time. Kojirō recalled his graduation when he declared that he would be the first Japanese chef to receive the Pluspol medal, a prestigious medal in French cuisine, and the hardships he faced on his way there. Gin further noted that Kojirō has not figured what to do now after his ultimate goal had been achieved, which caused him to refrain from showing one of his specialized dishes to hide his standstill. Enraged, Kojirō responded to Gin for pointing out his flaws better than himself, only to be halted by Gin who made him eat Megumi's dish to prove his point. Kojirō reluctantly ate the dish and nitpicked the dish's faults at first. In mid-sentence of his critique, he was compelled to take another bite. Megumi's dish pierced his cold heart and reminded him of his childhood. Tears fell from his eyes as he was reminded of the love and warmth given to him by his mother. Kojirō unconsciously dropped the coin onto Megumi's plate. Gin asked Kojirō if he had ever considered such hospitality during his ascension to the medal. As Kojirō realized that he had been cooking "alone", Hinako added one last coin to Megumi's plate, rendering the duel a tie. Gin left the final decision to Kojirō, who accepted that Megumi's hospitality was worth keeping in Tōtsuki Culinary Academy. The Final Day On the fifth day, Kojirō and the other Alumni prepared a lavish banquet for the 628 students who passed the hellish training camp. The next day, Kojirō packed up his things and prepared to depart. In the hotel lobby, he met and wished both Megumi and Sōma well during their life at Tōtsuki as he returned to France in order to pursue his new goal in life, earn a 3 Michelin Star rating for his restaurant. Just as he was about to tell them something, he was stopped by the other Alumni, thinking he was recruiting them to work for his restaurant. As Kojirō left, he gave one last look at Sōma, sensing his potential to become something great at Tōtsuki Academy. The 43rd Annual Tōtsuki Autumn Election Main article: Tōtsuki Autumn Election Arc When Senzaemon Nakiri made his opening speech in the lobby of the ''Shokugeki'' Arena, Kojirō and other Alumni was pictured as a source of inspiration and endeavor to the students of the 92nd generation. As Sōma looked amongst the portraits of the previous 1st Seats of the Elite Ten council, he spotted a picture of Kojirō. Months later, Kojirō was invited by Gin to see Sōma's official Shokugeki in the Semifinals. However, Kojirō declined due to his busy schedule in his restaurant. Before he hung up the phone, Kojirō told Gin to send his regards to Hinako and Fuyumi who were both judges for the Semifinals. Stagiaire Main article: Stagiaire Arc Several weeks later, Kojirō traveled back to Japan, opening a new branch of his restaurant, Shino's Tokyo. During this time, the students of the 92nd Generation was participating in the Stagiaire event and Gin personally put his new restaurant as a Stagiaire location for a student to complete their training, much to his annoyance. To make matters worse, the student assigned to his restaurant was none other than Sōma. Amused that Sōma was the student selected to work at his restaurant, he quickly put him to work, helping to set up the interior of the restaurant for its opening week. As they put in the light fixtures, Sōma asked why he decided to open up a branch of his restaurant in Japan. Although Kojirō did not tell him the exact reason, Kojirō remembered why he decided to specialize in French Cuisine. As the trial week went underway, Sōma was initially unable to keep up, causing Kojirō to force Lucie Hugo and Abel Blondin to cover up his slowness. However, as the week progressed, Sōma's skill grew exponentially and was able to stay ahead of everyone by the end of the week. With one last day, Kojirō announced that the staff would have a dish competition with the winning one being placed on the menu. Kojirō allowed Sōma to participate, knowing that if he won, it would fulfill his requirement for the Stagiaire. Sōma's dish was well received and even Kojirō said that it was good. Still, he deemed it not good enough to be on his menu in its current state. Kojirō offered to teach Sōma how to prepare the dish in his own style, which Sōma accepted, calling him Master Shinomiya out of respect, much to Kojirō's embarrassment. At the end of the week, Kojirō bid Sōma farewell and told him to attain the first seat of the Elite Ten because he was now a former trainee of Shino's and a loss would stain its reputation. With Shino's Tokyo now officially opened to the public, a new special dish was found on the menu: Quail Stuffed with Risotto and Eggs ~Brazen Youngster Style~. Current Events Kojirō has since been shown working at Shino's Tokyo, keeping his restaurant in line. Even though Sōma's Stagiaire with him had ended, he continues to think about him, still expressing his encouragement for Sōma to take the first seat and see the true culinary world from that seat. Kojirō was recruited to aid the Rebels during the Rebels Vs. Central Régiment de Cuisine. Cooking Style *'French Cuisine' - Kojirō's main forte is French Cuisine with an emphasis on the creative usage of vegetables. He tends to use in Légumes Oubliés, root vegetables, which are very common in Japanese cuisine but not so much in French Cuisine. This allowed him to cook french dishes in a different dimension than traditional dishes. With these skills he easily attained the 1st Seat of the Elite Ten Council, graduated from Tōtsuki, and eventually moved to France. It was his dream to earn the Pluspol Award, a highly coveted and respected French Cuisine award and was the first Japanese man to win the said award, a testament to his true skill. However, he is not limited to just French Cuisine as he has shown to be well versed enough to cook an Italian dish to beat even Fuyumi, who was an Italian Cuisine expert. Dishes Original Dishes *'Nine Vegetable Terrine' - Kojirō wanted the students of the 92nd Tōtsuki Generation to make this dish during the second day of the Tōtsuki Friendship and Rapport Training Camp. This common French dish utilizes nine different types of vegetables that is aligned and basked in a green gelatinous compound. *'Chou Farci' - Kojirō's choice for his unofficial Shokugeki ''against Sōma Yukihira and Megumi Tadokoro. Using savoy cabbage to wrap the chicken breast, the new take on the standard Chou Farci shows the prowess of the Légumes Magician. *'Quiche De Légumes Oubliés' - A dish made by Kojirō when he decided to cook a meal for Sōma and his kitchen staff during Sōma's Stagiaire in Shino's Tokyo. It utilizes burdock root, an uncommon ingredient in French cuisine. *'Tomates Farcies' - A dish made by Kojirō in a wager against some land sharks that terrorized ''Marché Bastille in Paris. Using tomato as the main ingredient, the dish is stuffed with meat or vegetables along with different variations of spices, herbs and parsley which can concentrate and support the flavor of the tomato. *'Flan Aux Champignon' *'Tofurkey' Cooking Duel Records Unofficial Shokugeki (*) Kojirō originally won this Shokugeki until Gin decided to vote for Sōma and Megumi. Kojirō was given a coin, which he dropped into Megumi's plate after eating her dish. Inui added one last vote, resulting in a tie. This however caused the Shokugeki to become unofficial. Trivia *''Kojirō'' (小次郎) means "little second son". Shinomiya (四宮) means "four palaces". *The Pluspol Medal resembles the National Order of Merit awards, which were dedicated to remarkable citizens of France. *Despite his short appearances, Kojirō remains a largely popular character and is the most popular alumnus in the series. He ranked 5th in the first popularity poll with 487 votes.Shokugeki no Soma chapter 56, page 2 He ranked 7th in a second Popularity Poll with 1882 votes.Shokugeki no Soma chapter 121, page 1 *Kojirō knows how to play the guitar, as seen on the cover for Chapter 114. It is also shown that he started learning how to play the guitar when he was a 2nd-year middle school student.Shokugeki no Soma volume 14 extras References Navigation zh:四宮小次郎 es:Kojirō Shinomiya Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Tōtsuki Academy Alumni Category:Chef Category:79th Generation Students Category:Judge Category:Elite Ten Council Category:Tōtsuki Autumn Election Participants Category:Shokugeki Participants